Malicious PDF — malware analysis report

Static analysis result for SHA-256 14ee33eae9976887…

MALICIOUS

PDF

355.0 KB Created: 2005-01-05 17:42:28 -06:00 Authoring application: LaTeX with hyperref package (via pdfeTeX-1.20a)
MD5: cfaf9054ea88c0a6c7efefc724fd3008 SHA-1: a50bb20d8a854e353e9b02c60e29cb790f780526 SHA-256: 14ee33eae99768873601244ff948dae1fb3f6820cc2c302bc6ca28c758c0e67f
582 Risk Score

Malware Insights

MITRE ATT&CK
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution T1059.007 JavaScript T1566.001 Spearphishing Attachment

The PDF file contains embedded JavaScript that leverages a launch action to execute cmd.exe. This command then proceeds to execute a dropped Windows executable payload, disguised as 'meterpreter.pdf'. The embedded executable is detected as Win.Trojan.Rozena, indicating a malicious payload. The ML classifier also flagged this PDF as malicious with high confidence.

Machine Learning

  • Nyx PDF Classifier malicious score 0.9882

Heuristics 17

  • Adobe Reader Launch action command execution critical CVE exact CVE_2010_1240
    PDF uses the Adobe Reader/Acrobat Launch action pattern associated with CVE-2010-1240: cmd.exe is invoked with attacker-controlled parameters, paired with an embedded/exported payload.
  • Launch action critical PDF_LAUNCH
    PDF contains a /Launch action whose target is an executable, URL, or UNC path — can start an external application
  • Embedded Windows executable payload in PDF stream critical PDF_EMBEDDED_PE_PAYLOAD
    PDF stream bytes contain an embedded Windows executable with a verified PE header. Exploit chains often hide droppers inside ordinary streams rather than standard /EmbeddedFile attachments.
  • /Launch action target: cmd.exe critical PDF_LAUNCH_COMMAND
    PDF /Launch action specifies an executable target with parameters '/Q /C %HOMEDRIVE%&cd %HOMEPATH%&(if exist "Desktop\\meterpreter.pdf" (cd "Desktop"' — references a known-dangerous executable (cmd, PowerShell, etc.).
  • Embedded attachment masquerades: declared document, content is windows-executable critical PDF_EMBEDDED_FILESPEC_CONTENT_MISMATCH
    An /EmbeddedFile attachment's declared filename extension or /Subtype MIME type contradicts the magic bytes of its decompressed content. The attachment is declared as a benign document or image but the bytes are an executable or executable-bearing archive. This is a deliberate deception used to hide droppers in PDF attachments and is a generic indicator of embed-and-drop weaponisation, independent of any specific CVE.
  • ClamAV: Pdf.Tool.Agent-1388586 critical CLAMAV_DETECTION
    ClamAV detected this file as malware: Pdf.Tool.Agent-1388586
  • ClamAV detection on extracted artifact critical EXTRACTED_FILE_CLAMAV
    ClamAV flagged at least one file extracted from inside this sample. Even when the wrapping document carries no AV detection of its own, a hit on the carved artifact is a strong indicator the sample is a delivery vehicle.
  • /Launch action paired with attachment-dropping JS API high PDF_LAUNCH_PLUS_DROPPER_JS
    PDF combines a /Launch action with a JavaScript API call that writes or opens an attached/external resource — the canonical shape of the CVE-2010-1240 /Launch + exportDataObject family. Benign PDFs do not pair these surfaces; the combination indicates a drop-and-execute chain regardless of the specific JS API knobs or /Launch target.
  • Clickable PDF combines external action with parser-evasion structure high PDF_ACTION_PARSER_EVASION
    PDF has an external clickable URI together with object graph or xref structures that make parsers disagree, such as divergent duplicate objects, parser divergence, or xref offset mismatch. That combination is stronger than a plain link: the document is both an outward-action carrier and a parser-confusion/evasion sample.
  • Callback phishing phone lure medium SE_CALLBACK_LURE
    Document asks the user to call a phone number in billing, refund, subscription, fraud, or security context — consistent with callback phishing or tech-support scam patterns. Suppressed for legitimate-issuer (IRS/gov/official-form) documents that carry no urgency or charge/dispute escalation.
  • JavaScript action low PDF_JAVASCRIPT
    PDF contains a /JavaScript action. Generic JavaScript is common in benign forms; specific dangerous APIs are scored by separate rules.
  • Embedded JS stream low PDF_JS
    PDF references a /JS stream. Generic JavaScript is common in benign forms; specific dangerous APIs are scored by separate rules.
  • Embedded file low PDF_EMBEDDED
    PDF embeds a file attachment — could carry an executable or another weaponised document as a nested payload
  • External URI info PDF_URI
    PDF contains an external URL action
  • Object number defined twice with different bodies info PDF_DUPLICATE_OBJ_BODY_INCREMENTAL
    The same indirect object (N G) is defined more than once with different body bytes. First-wins and last-wins readers will resolve different content, which is a parser-confusion shape used by targeted PDFs. Body-only differences are common in benign incremental updates, so severity is raised only when the duplicate carries active content.
  • Suspicious extracted artifact info EXTRACTED_FILE_STATIC_TRIAGE
    One or more files extracted from inside this sample matched static suspicious-content checks such as script obfuscation, encoded payload blobs, packed data, or execution/download terms.
  • Embedded URL info EMBEDDED_URL
    One or more URLs were extracted from the document. The URL itself is not a detection — see the per-URL labels for which channel (macro, JS, link annotation, document body, ...) reached each URL.
    URL http://www.nologin.org/Downloads/Papers/remote-library-injection.pdf
    • http://www.coresecurity.com/files/files/11/SyscallProxying.pdf
    • http://www.nologin.org/Downloads/Papers/
    • http://www.coresecurity.com/files/files/11/

Extracted artifacts 16

Files carved from inside the sample during analysis.

FilenameKindSourceSize
meterpreter.pdf
0f8ad560d509951d93edf682856a667cf96ca911caaf922e0b84a49cb5c7bc21
pdf-embedded-file PDF EmbeddedFile object 864 at offset 0x53A8B 37888 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: Win.Trojan.Rozena-131
Obfuscation or payload: unlikely
javascript_obj0865_000.js
24b6b404dea89988cc735752ddd759a422fb737e34c7e15d8879494fc134fa5c
pdf-javascript-stream PDF /JS object 865 at offset 0x5875B 60 bytes
stream_071_off00030601.bin
0882609dbbf4a45765cc12d10d7becb206f0733144eb3001ac315a431bf3a05d
decompressed-pdf-stream PDF FlateDecoded stream at offset 0x30601 13744 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.78, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
stream_077_off0003c68c.bin
0aac46f4a240a317fb13e0b8de804dcd418499654cbbba1409bad21e5ef6ca1b
decompressed-pdf-stream PDF FlateDecoded stream at offset 0x3C68C 8480 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.69, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_00_type1_off0002d388.bin
2ff0ae917f724ae8e80b550c31c9db5effe62b7698716d967219e9b9083af8e9
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x2D388 12660 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.77, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_02_type1_off00033c85.bin
a13d5d27b718e3c710c8c12e98337ce28f17975c93f53beb228b33da40deeb73
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x33C85 5458 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.45, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_03_type1_off00035274.bin
58a61131c209c2a02d1d8df416c5dcace012737a310a19877b8f1dca40e7244b
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x35274 7595 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.61, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_04_type1_off00037055.bin
e3f97f56c71ce3df86c98c94af0c44601af2b5e41fca316ba26fc0f5ec565212
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x37055 2731 bytes
font_05_type1_off00037a7f.bin
decf29c5496e934d028d395dd9f7088863d5ed740cb29e439ecbe65325d4da1e
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x37A7F 2725 bytes
font_06_type1_off000384a5.bin
0a500d5049b87a2fa1459bfaf59e904d61ffeaad0d4dc109c4539ca9c6bca290
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x384A5 16616 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.81, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_08_type1_off0003e829.bin
7c46613ae0d62549993a7e3dd01b2d5a2550b7cf1ddf9655c9c6f9276074e0df
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x3E829 15713 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.82, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_09_type1_off0004266a.bin
27d2b3834e6c3540c46b1aa5d8b1f5c0a83cace1551fc843d88be834c11bbe10
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x4266A 12586 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.79, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_10_type1_off0004582d.bin
4fa1eb42011a0b4e5f5aed321337b37cd0f4b73992bd842202fbcf60d0147bce
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x4582D 10887 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.73, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_11_type1_off00048369.bin
a7d90ccfd200ecf8e2e78a8104b168deb9e172b66ceb10d3b2904699ba43e1a6
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x48369 5559 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact entropy is 7.46, consistent with packed or encrypted content.
font_12_type1_off00049a1c.bin
40987afa81c7845d73ebaf8ece0ff180f478b6d810597ac61ae9c24815c575e5
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x49A1C 4790 bytes
font_13_type1_off0004ad39.bin
715348854815ff3971434f10aae5e6c47ab68b20c02a0aac1e4b722d6bd6c103
pdf-font-stream PDF embedded font (type1) at offset 0x4AD39 3973 bytes